Attorney General's News Release

August 21, 2001

Nixon sues owners of St. Louis truck salvage yard for environmental contamination caused by used oil

Jefferson City, Mo. — Attorney General Jay Nixon today filed a lawsuit against the owners of a truck salvage yard in south St. Louis for what Nixon said were serious and ongoing environmental violations caused by the dumping of used oil and other hazardous wastes.

Named as defendants in the lawsuit are Laurence J. Goldstein and Samuel Goldstein and their businesses, Goldstein Truck Parts & Sales Redevelopment Corp., Goldstein Truck Parts & Sales Inc. and National Recycling Inc. Their two-acre salvage yard is located at 1420 and 1430 South Vandeventer Drive, between I-64/U.S. 40 and I-44.

Inspections by the Department of Natural Resources found unlabeled open drums of used oil that were exposed to the elements, large areas of soil contaminated with oil, and a pool of water and oil four feet deep in the basement of an abandoned building on the property.

"Urban environmental hazards should be taken very seriously," Nixon said. "All our citizens deserve protection from environmental hazards, and those in the city should not be placed at risk in the hope that no one will notice."

The specific hazardous waste violations cited in the lawsuit include:

• Failure to clean up spills of used oil;
• Failure to determine if waste is hazardous;
• Not labeling containers of used oil; and
• Allowing open containers of used oil to be stored outside, exposed to rain.

"In response to the citations issued by the DNR, the defendants have made only minimal efforts to correct any of these problems," Nixon said. "Perhaps a court order will get their attention."

Nixon is asking the St. Louis City Circuit Court to issue injunctions against the Goldsteins to prevent them from further violations of the Missouri Hazardous Waste Management Law, as well as an order for civil penalties of up to $10,000 per day per violation of the law. Nixon also is seeking an order from the court requiring the defendants to propose a plan and schedule for DNR to review for the Goldsteins to sample and remove all hazardous waste at the site.

Inquiries from consumers should be directed to consumer@ago.mo.gov or 1-800-392-8222 (from within Missouri) or 573-751-3321 (outside Missouri).

All media inquiries should be directed to Press Secretary John Fougere.

E-mail      Phone: 573-751-8844         Fax: 573-751-5818